1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a method of growing mushrooms and an apparatus thereof.
2. Prior Art
FIG. 5 is a flow-sheet showing a mushroom growing process conventionally adopted.
According to the conventional process for growing and harvesting mushrooms on commercial basis, first a compost is prepared by mixing vegetable carbohydrate (hemicellulose, cellulose) such as wheat straw, rice straw or the like with nitrogen source such as horse manure, ammonium sulfate, lime nitrogen, urea, etc. to carry out aerobic fermentation (fermentation I). Growing beds of fixed or stationary type are stuffed with the compost to form a compost layer (stuffing), then second fermentation is performed, and sterilization and compost ageing are further performed (fermentation II).
When the fermentation is almost terminated and the temperature of the compost layer comes down to 22.degree.-25.degree. C., mushroom fungi are spawned in the compost spawning, thus cultivation of mushroom fungi being started. When the cultivation has advanced and the fungi are sufficiently formed in the compost layer, soil of a few centimeters in thickness is applied to the surface of the compost layer to accumulatively form a casing soil layer (casing). By such an arrangement, hyphaes are collectively unified around the boundary between the casing soil layer and the compost layer to germinate a bud or fruit body initiate (i.e., a so-called pinhead) of fruit body (mushroom), which grows to a harvestable fruit body under a well-controlled atmosphere.
According to the conventional mushroom growing process operated on a commercial basis, harvest time continues 7 to 10 days and is periodically repeated. In general, this most fruitful harvest time is repeated 3 times or so with sufficient yield both in quantity and quality, but after the harvest time the yield sharply declines in quantity and quality (harvest).
Since the yield of mushrooms sharply declines on and after the fourth harvest time both in quantity and quality, in order to improve the harvest efficiency or productivity, it is usually adopted by growers that the harvest days are restricted to 40 to 60 days, thereafter the growing beds used up to that time are abandoned or scrapped (end of harvest) and the content therein is removed for replacement, and after performing sterilization the beds are stuffed with new compost to start again the steps shown in FIG. 5.
As a result, a satisfactory high level of harvest cannot be expected since the contents of the beds are abandoned and scrapped in so short a time, i.e., only after the operation of 40 to 60 days, which makes the growing operation less productive, busy and hard all year. Moreover, there is a problem of economy due to accumulation of material cost under such low level of productivity.